Trench shoring apparatus



Dec. 1, 1970 TORTI TRENcE SHORING APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 20. 1969 R ml m MT 3 l G a U l m V M E v w w fi 3 84L, 2 8 2 w. 3 3 .2 0 6 (3 4 3 0 w M 4 4 G 0 M -6 F l e E 62 m 5 r0 ATTORNEYS 1, 1970 E. TORTI 3,543,522

'IRENCH SHORING APPARATUS Filed March 20. 1969 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 26 g] it I u/26 INVENTORI EMANUEL TORT! ATTORNEYS United States US. C]. 61-41 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Trench shoring apparatus comprising telescoping inner and outer members and power means for effecting expansion and retraction of the telescoping members with respect to each other, one of said members having an end wall for engaging back fill in a trench, wherein upon such engagement and subsequent expansion of the members, the member that is not in engagement with the back fill will be caused to move along the trench in a direction away from the back fill, the improvement comprising the provision of pivotal guide means located adjacent the forward end of said last-mentioned member and power means for effecting pivotal movement of said guide means in order that the apparatus may be steered sideways and downwardly as it self-propels along the trench in response to selective actuation of said guide means.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to the type of apparatus illustrated and disclosed in applicants US. Pat. No. 3,089,310 dated May 14, 1963, and in applicants copending application Ser. No. 639,324, filed May 18, 1967.

In apparatus of this general type, a trench shoring machine is provided that functions to protect workers who are laying pipe or performing other similar progressive work along the length of a trench that has been dug into the ground for receiving the pipe or the like. Where work of this nature is being performed in a trench, particularly where the ground is relatively loose or soft, a serious danger of cave-in exists; and hence, in order to protect the workers, it is necessary to provide shoring for the side walls of the trench. To eifect this shoring by means of boards or sheets at opposite sides of the trench is an extremely time consuming and expensive procedure, particularly where the trench is of considerable depth and/or length, as is frequently the case in work of this type.

Apparatus of the instant type overcomes the time and expense involved in using conventional shoring and at the same time permits a far greater amount of work to be performed along the length of a trench for a given period of time. Thus, the apparatus herein referred to and disclosed generally in the above mentioned patents comprises a pair of telescoping shell-like members that have power means for effecting expansion and retraction of the members with respect to each other. The members have opposed side walls that are located closely adjacent the opposite sides of the trench, whereupon the opposed side walls actually function as the shoring means for the trench walls. One of the telescoping members, preferably the inner one, has an end wall which is adapted to engage back fill in the trench, whereupon when such engagement exists, and the telescoping members are expanded with respect to each other, the other section is forced along the trench in a direction away from the back fill. The power means are then reversed to retract the section that is in engagement with the back fill into the other section, after which more back fill is introduced behind the apparatus, and the operation is then repeated. Thus, it will be seen that the trench shoring apparatus works off the back fill and actually self-propels itself along the length of the trench, whereupon men who are working 3,543,522 Patented Dec. 1, 1970 in the trench work within the confines of the apparatus and thus enjoy the protection against cave-ins and the like aiforded thereby.

It is frequently desirable, as apparatus of the type above described propels itself along the length of the trench, to alter the direction of the apparatus by causing it to move obliquely either left or right, depending upon conditions that may be confronted in the trench. It is also desirable, upon occasion, to cause the apparatus to move obliquely in a downward direction; and it is to the achievement of these objectives that the instant invention is directed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION As heretofore set forth, the instant invention basically comprises inner and outer telescoping members, each having opposed side walls for effecting the desired shoring of opposite sides of a trench. Power means are provided for effecting expansion and retraction of the telescoping members with respect to each other, and one of the members, preferably the inner one, has an end wall adapted to engage back fill in the trench. When so engaged, the power means are actuated to effect relative expansion of the members, whereupon the outer member will be caused to move along the trench in a direction away from the back fill until the expansion stroke is completed, at which point the power means are reversed to retract the inner member into the outer member. Addi tional back fill is then introduced at the rear of the apparatus, and the aforesaid operation is then repeated.

A primary object of the instant invention is to provide guide means at the forward end of the outer member in order that the direction of the apparatus may be controlled as it moves along the trench.

Another object is to provide guide means that are power actuated, whereby movement of the guide means may be remotely controlled.

A further object is the provision of guide means that may be operated to cause the apparatus to move to the left or right as it moves along the trench and which also may be operated to cause the apparatus to penetrate downwardly through the bottom of the trench to a desired depth.

A further object is the provision of guide means of the character described that may be conveniently and economically added to existing trench shoring equipment of the type hereinbefore described.

A further object is the provision of trench shoring apparatus of the character described having guide means of the character described, said apparatus and guide means being efficient and durable in use and being economically feasible to manufacture.

Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the description thereof proceeds when considered in connection with the accompanying illustrative drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the drawings which illustrate the best mode presently contemplated for carrying out the present invention:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of my invention with a portion broken away for purposes of illustration;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged section taken on line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary elevational view showing some of the details of the guide means, with parts broken away for purposes of illustration;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged section taken on line 44 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a section taken on line 55 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a section taken on line 66 of FIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary elevational view, partly in section, showing a modified form of the instant invention, with portions broken away for purposes of illustration.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION As previously described, trench shoring apparatus of the general type involved in the instant invention comprises inner and outer telescoping members; but since the instant invention is directed to guide means which are located solely on the outer member, only the latter is shown in the drawings. More specifically, the outer member is shown generally at 10 and comprises side walls 12 and 14 terminating at forward edges 16 and 18, respectively. A top wall 20 is provided having a cut-out portion 22 at its forward end.

It will be understood that outer shell 10 is propelled along the trench in the direction of the arrow shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and movement of outer member 10 along the trench is caused by relative expansion between outer member 10 and its telescoping inner member (not shown) when the latter is engaging back fill in the trench, all in the manner heretofore described and clearly shown in applicants US. Pat. No. 3,089,310. To provide greater strength to the member 10, inner walls 24 are provided in alignment with opposite side edges of cutout 22, while channel members 26 extend along opposite sides of top wall 20. Additional channel members 28 extend longitudinally along the inner surface of side walls 12 and 14 to provide further rigidity.

As the outer member 10 moves along the trench, it may become desirable to cause the member to move to the left or right. This is accomplished by providing pivotally mounted guide means 30 at the forward edges 16 and 18 of walls 12 and 14. The guide means 30 comprise an outer section 32 which comprises a vertical wall that is in alignment with and is pivotally connected to the walls 12 and 14. This pivotal connection may be effected by any desired means, such as a vertical pin 34, which receives there around barrels 36 attached to walls 32, and barrels 37 attached to walls 12 and 14, as by welding or the like.

The guide means 30 each comprises an inner wall 38 which extends angularly from the forward edge of the wall portions 32 so as to provide a V-shaped configuration in cross section, as will be clearly seen in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4. In order to effect pivotal movement of the guide means 30 with respect to walls 12 and 14, each guide means is provided with a vertically extending C channel member 40, to which is secured a plurality of vertically spaced brackets 42, each of which has a vertical pin 44 mounted therein. A plurality of cylinders 46 are mounted on the inner surfaces of side walls 12 and 14 by any suitable means, each of said cylinders having a piston rod 48 secured at its outer extremity to one of the pins 44. Thus, viewing FIG. 4, it will be seen that as piston rod 48 extends beyond the position illustrated, the guide means 30 will rotate in a clockwise direction about pivot pin 34, whereupon said guide means will angulate outwardly with respect to the adjacent side wall 12. Reverse movement of piston rod 48 will cause the guide means to rotate in a counterclockwise direction, whereupon the aligned position of FIG. 4 will again be assumed, or if desired, wherein the guide means will actually turn inwardly with respect to the adjacent side wall. Any desired number of cylinders may be employed to pivot each of the guide means, although in practice three vertically spaced pistons have been found to be satisfactory. It will be understood that any suitable hydraulic or pneumatic operating means may be employed for effecting operation of the cylinders; and it will further be understood that the cylinders connected to a single guide means operate simultaneously and in synchronism, although not necessarily in synchronism with the cylinders connected to the opposite guide means. In other words, it may be desirable on occasion to effect pivotal movement of one 4 of the guide means 30 without effecting any movement of the other, or it may possibly be desirable on occasion to effect different pivotal movement of the opposed guide means.

It will be understood that as the outer member 10 moves along the trench, the side walls of the trench will either be in engagement with the side walls 12 and 14 or else closely adjacent thereto. By deflecting one of the guide 'means 30 in an outward direction, the pointed forward edge of the guide means Will be caused to penetrate through the adjacent wall of the trench, thus causing the apparatus to move in that direction. Thus, the guide means 30 function as steering means for the device, and obviously the control of the guide means may be operated from a remote point.

It is frequently desirable to scrape away the bottom of the trench, either to smooth same, or else to gradually deepen the trench as the apparatus passes therethrough. To accomplish this, the outer member 10 is provided with a vertically reciprocating plate 50 that extends across the member or housing 10 a short distance rearwardly of the aforesaid cutout 22. The plate member 50 may either be a single, relatively thick plate or else may comprise a pair of spaced plates 52 and 54 having a bottom plate 56 spanning the distance therebetween. The bottom plate 56 has angulated portions 58 that facilitate penetration of the plate member 50 into the bottom of the trench.

If desired, the angulated portions 58 could merge together to form a sharp point at the lower edge of the plate member, although it has been found desirable to provide a relatively short, flat portion between the angulated portions 58.

As shown in FIG. 6, the plate member 50 has secured thereto at opposite side edges thereof back-to-back C channels 60, 62, it being noted that the outermost channels 62 slidably engage Within vertically disposed channels 64 secured to the inner surface of the walls 12 and 14. A pair of vertically disposed cylinders 66 have rods 68 connected to the upper edge of the plate member 50 by any suitable means, whereupon expansion of piston rods 68 causes the plate member 50 to move downwardly to the broken-line position shown in FIG. 5. Thus, when it is desired to either scrape the bottom of the trench or else gradually deepen the trench, the cylinders 66 are operated by any suitable pneumatic or hydraulic means to extend the plate member 50 below the bottom of the outer member 10.

In FIG. 7 there is shown a slightly modified form of my invention wherein in place of the vertically reciprocating plate member 50 there is provided an additional guide means 70 similar in structure and operation to the aforedescribed guide means 30. The only difference is that the guide means 70 is pivotally connected to a bottom wall portion 72 as at 74 and extends horizontally across the bottom of the outer member 10. A pair of cylinders 76 adjacent opposite ends of guide means 70 are operable to pivot said guide means to the downwardly inclined position illustrated in broken lines in FIG. 7 or any other desired downward inclination. It will be understood that the guide means 70 functions as a substitute for the vertically reciprocating plate member 50 but has the disadvantage thereover that it may be inclined to any desired degree to effect gradual penetration of the bottom of the trench, if such is desired.

While there is shown and described herein certain specific structure embodying the invention, it will be manifest to those skilled in the art that various modifications and rearrangements of the parts may be made Without departing from the spirit and scope of the underlying inventive concept and that the same is not limited to the particular forms herein shown and described.

I claim:

1. In trench shoring apparatus comprising inner and outer telescoping members, said outer members having a front and rear end and spaced side walls for supporting opposite sides of a trench, said inner member having spaced side walls and an end wall located adjacent the aforesaid outer member rear end, power means for effecting extension of said inner member with respect to said outer member and for retracting said inner member into said outer member, whereby when said inner member end wall engages back fill in the trench and said power means are actuated, said outer shell is caused to move along said trench in a direction away from said backfill, the improvement comprising guide means pivotally mounted at the front end of each outer member side wall, said guide means forming an extension of said outer member side walls and being pivotal about a vertical axis, and power means for effecting pivotal movement of said guide means.

2. In the trench shoring apparatus of claim 1, said guide means each comprising an outer wall portion having a rear vertical edge closely adjacent the vertical edge of its respective side wall, and an inner wall portion extending angularly from the front edge of said outer wall portion, whereby said guide means are V-shaped in cross section.

3. In the trench shoring apparatus of claim 1, a vertically disposed plate member extending substantially across said outer member, said plate member being mounted rearwardly of said guide means, means mounting said plate member for vertical reciprocating movement between an upper position wherein said plate member is entirely within said outer member and a lower position wherein the lower edge of said plate member is disposed below said outer member, and power means for effecting movement of said plate member.

4. In the trench shoring apparatus of claim 3, the lower edge of said plate member having angulated portions for facilitating penetration of said plate member into the bottom of the trench.

5. In the trench shoring apparatus of claim 1, additional guide means extending horizontally across said outer member adjacent the bottom thereof, said additional guide means being located rearwardly of the aforesaid vertical guide means, said additional guide means being pivotally mounted to said outer member for movement between a first position wherein said additional guide means is located entirely within said outer member and a second position wherein said additional guide means extends below said outer member, and power means for effecting pivotal movement of said additional guide means.

6. In the trench shoring machine of claim 5, all of said guide means being of V-shape in cross section with the point of the V forming the leading edge of the guide means, thus facilitating penetration of the trench walls and bottom.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,089,310 5/1963 Torti 61-41 3,204,415 9/1965 Hill et a1. 6 1-85 X 3,382,002 5/1968 Tabor 61-85 X FOREIGN PATENTS 597,063 5/ 1934 Germany.

DENNIS L. TAYLOR, Primary Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 61-85 

